The Greenville City Council will fund the Greenville Convention Center with more than $200,000 to help replace equipment.
The Council voted unanimously at their April 14 meeting to use $222,778 from the city’s State Accommodations Tax Fund for the convention center’s financial assistance, which is half of what the city-owned entity requested to replace a dishwasher and five combination walk-in coolers and freezers.
The State Accommodations Tax fund is fueled by a 2% tax on accommodation businesses for the purpose of promoting tourism, the arts and cultural affairs in the community. The city’s portion of the fund is estimated around $4.5 million total for the 2024-25 fiscal year.
Built in 1964, the Greenville Convention Center hosts over 250,000 attendees annually and the facility is considered a tourism related facility for civic and cultural activities. The facility, featuring 280,000 square feet of exhibit space and 60,000 square feet of meeting and conference space, is owned by the City of Greenville and managed by OVG360.
Since 2020, the city has had to transfer funds to the convention center enterprise fund to cover its operating losses. The city transferred roughly $900,000 from their hospitality tax fund to the convention center in the 2022 and 2023 fiscal years, and budgeted $600,000 in transfers from the same fund in the 2024 and 2025 fiscal years.
The convention center’s financial troubles has led the city to discuss selling or leasing a portion of it to Greenville County, as well exploring funding for a new conference center in the downtown area. The city released a request for information to seek possible ideas for the downtown conference center earlier this year, with the deadline for proposals closing in mid-April.
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